2022 Phillies Major League Regular Season Discussion

[Austinfan]

Yeah, but the book on Bohm off last season was he can't handle heat - obviously he fixed that issue.

Now I think pitchers will start showing him heat but attack the zone with off speed stuff, hoping he'll chase heat outside the zone and freeze on off speed stuff in the zone.

That's when he'll need to be disciplined, avoiding weak contact on pitches out of the zone or constantly falling behind in the count. He's rediscovered his rookie mojo, now the next step in the cat and mouse game is to avoid taking the bait and get pitchers into the hole (get ahead 2-1 and 3-1 on a regular basis) and be willing to take walks.

[andyb]

Bohm never had a huge issue with strikeouts so I don't think being aggressive is hurting him at all. If one is hitting .400 by swinging aggressively at first pitches, don't stop. Even chasing a bit is OK if the pitch is close. Pitchers will adjust of course and Bohm will too, but remember decent command of the strike zone has always been part of his skillset. What is different now is that he has shortened his swing. His hands are quicker to get to balls on the inside part of the plate.

Pitchers will throw more balls of course and Bohm will need to wait for his pitch, but there is nothing like a bunch of 2-0 and 3-1 counts to let a hitter unleash his power more. This version of Bohm we have seen still does not have much power. When pitchers adjust, Bohm will have an opportunity to show that. He is a very good offspeed pitch hitter. Now he'll see more of that along with fastballs in the zone when he is ahead in the count.

[David_Criss]

https://twitter.com/MattGelb/status/1554142664475410432
Phillies activated lefty Ryan Sherriff and then DFA'd him. There were some concerns that the velocity wasn't there as expected during his minor-league rehab. Was a waiver claim in the offseason

[andyb]

Very strong likelihood we'll need that 40-man spot by tomorrow also.

[julio]

Phillies activated lefty Ryan Sherriff and then DFA'd him. There were some concerns that the velocity wasn't there as expected during his minor-league rehab. Was a waiver claim in the offseason

Very strong likelihood we'll need that 40-man spot by tomorrow also.

Sherriff was on the 60-day IL, so this move had no impact on the current 40-man roster.

[andyb]

Sherriff was on the 60-day IL, so this move had no impact on the current 40-man roster.

But one has to be activated (majors or minors) after a 30-day rehab stint. The Phillies paused this once but guessing they are within a week of that 30-day limit and they would have to move him off the 60 at that time like they did for Emanuel a little while ago.

Just checked and saw he has pitched consistently since 7/3 on his latest rehab so they did need to activate him by tomorrow.

[bkeich]

Can't imagine he will be claimed, so it is a question of whether he wants to try and work from our minor league system or someone else's.

I am guessing it is easier to get some ML innings from a non-contender at this point in the season, they need AAAA types. Of course if his velocity is down he might be better off staying out of games that would advertise that fact.

[zambonir]

My guess is he's a COVID casualty. A lot of vaccinated people I know who've gotten it in the past month have been miserable for 10 days and still not back to full strength after 3 weeks. That's more than enough to sink an elite athlete for the rest of a season by falling behind/losing strength and stamina. And I doubt many of these players are boosted (nor are many Americans, especially under 50).

[julio]

Bryce Harper had the pins removed from his thumb. The #Phillies consider the fracture to be healed. Harper will continue his rehab and start a hitting progression soon.

— Scott Lauber ( @ScottLauber ) August 1, 2022

[bkox]

Zach Eflin to the 60-day IL. #Phillies claim LHP Andrew Vasquez off waivers from Toronto to take his place on 40-man roster. Vasquez optioned to Triple-A.

— Todd Zolecki ( @ToddZolecki ) August 2, 2022

The earliest Zach Eflin could rejoin the #Phillies is Aug. 25.

— Todd Zolecki ( @ToddZolecki ) August 2, 2022

[andyb]

The JoJo replacement. High K rate LHP. Of course it is probably 50-50 he lasts the week on the 40-man.

[zambonir]

Technically they had to claim Vasquez first then move Eflin to make room (since you can't put a guy on the 60 until it's full).

The transaction scared me on first glance, and even with the backdate it's still not encouraging. Eflin probably can't make a credible major league start until mid-September.

Wonder if this also means they already know they are gonna get someone, and/or if they want to pay more for that now.

[Philsmania]

It's looking dubious that Eflin pitches again this season. Considering his medical questions, do the Phillies pick up that $15 million option or give him the $150k buyout?

[Lucky_Beagle]

buyout....without knowing anything about his medical record. Of course the Phillies should have much of that information. Do you risk paying $15 million if he can't come back and show he is healthy? Either let someone else take the chance on that type of salary/injury risk or resign him with an incentive type deal based upon starts or time on the active roster.

[andyb]

Eflin might be wise to come back on a 1-year deal (with the Phillies or somebody else) that has a low base and major innings-based incentives. If he were ever healthy he could get a 3-year deal at $10 million plus per year. Maybe more than that. He just needs to put together a 150-inning season to get that contract.

[zambonir]

It's a mutual option but obviously now Eflin might be more likely to take it if the Phillies execute their end. But yeah, that can probably be spun into a new negotiated one-year deal.

[andyb]

It is a $15 million mutual option. Zero chance of that getting accepted. It always had like a 1% chance of being accepted even when he signed it. I guess that clause made sense if Eflin were having a really good year with injury questions and just wanted to prove he was healthy. But he has not shown he is good enough to be worth $15 million a year this year even before the health questions.

[zambonir]

Well, I always thought it wouldn't be accepted by Eflin, not the Phillies. But now the situation is reversed.

[bkox]

The Phillies have designated Odúbel Herrera for assignment.

— Matt Gelb ( @MattGelb ) August 2, 2022

[andyb]

Phillies have DFA’d reliever Jeurys Familia. Odubel Herrera also DFA. Mickey Moniak and Francisco Morales will be active tonight.

— Jim Salisbury ( @JSalisburyNBCS ) August 2, 2022